The Venturi VBB program is a partnership with the Ohio State University, which has so far set two international land speed records for an electric vehicle: 303 mph (487 km/h) in 2009 and 307 mph (495 km/h) in 2010

The “Venturi Buckeye Bullet Racing” is back this on the Bonneville Salt Flats to try to beat its own world land speed record with a new streamliner, aiming for more than 600 km/h.

“Because the VBB-3 is a fantastic test bed for electric powertrains subjected to extreme conditions and environments, this new records program represents a truly strategic R&D initiative for Venturi.

The Venturi VBBs belong to a long tradition of record-breaking electric vehicles. Also known as the Venturi Jamais Contente, it pays homage to Camille Jenatzy’s electric car, the first to have broken the legendary 100 km/h barrier.”

With attempts delayed due to conditions, the team had time for a visit from their patron Prince Albert of Monaco, who unveiled the latest streamliner: the Venturi VBB-3, the world´s most powerful electric car.

After two years of development, the land speed record vehicle was supposed to run on the salt flats of Bonneville over the past few days, but due to poor weather conditions the FIA (more…)

Chinese state-owned auto-giant Guangzhou Automobile Group’s clever concept hybrid is going to have a special plug…

A marketing plug in the next installment of the Hollywood blockbuster Transformers movie. Apparently the movie series is a big hit in China and much of the latest picture is being filmed there.

The Trumpchi E-jet is only a concept at the moment, but it has a rather interesting drive train, which Guangzhou Automobile Group are developing with the South China University of Technology. The system uses a small (1000cc), four-cylinder petrol engine to power an on-board generator, with an electric motor driving the wheels and “an advanced lithium-ion polymer battery pack” to store power: it’s a plug-in hybrid, obviously.

Clever marketing and I’m sure we will see more and more Chinese cars on the big screen, and hopefully for sale in Europe and the US as they expand their efforts globally. I really like the look of the E-jet.